Chapter Twelve
The following morning, Jessica woke and tried to piece together the night before. She was still wearing the dress she had worn to the dance. She remembered driving with Damon out into the woods to bury the vampire's body, but she was so exhausted that she had fallen asleep in the peaceful quite of the woods whilst she was waiting.
Jessica yawned as she got up and started her morning routine of getting ready for school. Once she was ready, she walked out of bedroom and into the hallway. She immediately noticed Damon coming down the stairs that led to Stefan's room.
Jessica frowned, wondering what Damon had been doing in Stefan's bedroom.
Damon noticed Jessica.
"Good morning to you sleeping beauty. How are you feeling this morning? You were pretty tuckered out last night when I carried you to bed" Damon stated, trying to mask the undertone of concern in his voice.
"I'm fine now that I've had a good night's sleep. Thank you for taking me to my room" Jessica said.
Damon nodded.
"Well, I sure as hell wasn't going to leave you in the car, was I? You don't think THAT badly of me, do you?" he joked.
Jessica smiled and shook her head.
"No" she replied.
"Good, go get some breakfast" Damon ordered with a smirk.
Jessica went downstairs and made herself a cup of tea. Whilst she was sipping the hot beverage carefully, Stefan and Elena joined her in the kitchen.
"Morning Jessica, how are you feeling this morning?" Stefan asked.
"I'm good, I slept well" Jessica replied.
"Yeah, you had us worried for a bit last night" Elena said kindly.
"Thanks, I don't really remember any of it very well after I entered the cafeteria" Jessica admitted.
Stefan and Elena smiled at her in sympathy as they ate their breakfast, Stefan noticed that Jessica had not eaten anything.
"Not hungry this morning? You really should have something to eat" Stefan chastised.
Jessica just shook her head and finished her tea.
"No thanks, I'm fine" Jessica replied.
Stefan sighed and shook his head.
"Come on, I will drive us all to school" Stefan announced, admitting defeat for now.
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The drive to school was quiet, Jessica zoned out when Stefan and Elena started talking about an old journal from way back when.
At school, Jessica met up with Jeremy. She hadn't seen him since he started talking to that unknown girl the night before.
"Hey, I lost you last night" Jeremy stated as Jessica sat beside him in class.
Jessica shrugged.
"I got caught up in re-stocking napkins, cups, and plates. Also, I was meant to be cleaning up, remember?" Jessica sighed.
"Oh god, yeah! I forgot about that; well, you looked amazing last night. Half the guys here spent the night practically drooling over you" Jeremy informed her.
Jessica laughed.
"Seriously?!" she exclaimed, feeling awkward about that.
Jeremy nodded, then frowned at her.
"But I heard that you and Tyler got hot and heavy on the dancefloor" Jeremy said, trying not to grit his teeth over the thought of Tyler.
Jessica blushed; she had forgotten about that!
She didn't really have much time to think about the kiss she had shared with Tyler the night before. It had been one hell of a kiss; unlike any she had ever experienced before. She hadn't spoken to Tyler since it had happened either and she didn't want to analyse anything more about it until she had spoken to Tyler herself.
"That good, huh?" Jeremy asked as he watched the dazed expression cross her face.
"Yeah" Jessica replied in a nostalgic whisper.
Something about Jessica's expression frustrated Jeremy. He knew that Tyler was a jerk, and he definitely didn't want to see Jessica get hurt.
"How about you?" Jessica asked, bringing Jeremy out of his thoughts.
"What?" Jeremy asked.
"Who was that girl that you were talking with last night?" Jessica asked him.
Jeremy blanked for a moment and then remembered.
"Oh! I think you mean Anna? Yeah, she's the girl I met at the library a couple of weeks ago. She's cute but can be a little pushy. She's obsessed with vampires and keeps suggesting 'fright night' dates and is really into reading the founding family journals" Jeremy said.
Jessica frowned.
"She sounds a little weird and obsessive but, from what I saw, she was cute as hell, and she was so into you" Jessica said.
Jeremy grinned, he still wasn't sure if he wanted to keep Anna at arm's length and as a friend or not yet.
"So, after last night, I heard that you and Tyler are potentially a lot more than friends" Jeremy said, trying to change the subject.
"What?" Jessica asked.
"Have you not heard? Like, everyone's talking about how you and Tyler slept together the night of Caroline's party at The Grille" Jeremy said confused, he hadn't believed the stories as Jessica would have literally just arrived in town.
"No! I haven't heard. What do you mean? Are people really talking about me having sex with Tyler?!" Jessica exclaimed, panicking.
"Oh my God, it's true?! I thought it was all fake gossip" Jeremy exclaimed back; the pair had caught the attention of the rest of the classroom now.
"Well, I…" Jessica stuttered as she noticed all eyes on her.
She noticed that some of the guys were checking her out and most of the girls were glaring at her. She gulped at how uncomfortable it made her feel. She was starting to have flashbacks to when she was back at school in England when everything started going to shit.
"Hey Salvatore! We heard that you are one hell of a freak in the sheets" one of the boys yelled.
"Yeah, a girl who likes it rough apparently" another boy spoke up from the back of the classroom.
The class broke out into giggles.
Jessica went pale and her breathing started to become uneven at the attention she was receiving, she could feel the beginnings of an anxiety attack start to settle in her chest.
"Yeah, apparently the slut can suck, and she swallows as well!" a bitchy girl mocked her.
The class all broke out into gossip and Jessica vaguely heard less than favourable names being passed around about her.
Alaric had just entered the classroom ready to start the class when he noticed that something had got the students excited. He looked around the faces of the kids in the class. He heard Jessica's name mentioned a couple of times and looked over at the teen who looked like she just wanted the ground to open up and swallow her whole.
Alaric watched Jessica whilst he tried to tune in on the conversations to find out what was going on. When he saw Jeremy looking at Jessica in disapproval and disappointment.
"I didn't realise it was true! What were you thinking?! Spreading your legs for Tyler freaking Lockwood? Are you really that easy?!" Jeremy lashed out in anger.
That comment in particular got to Jessica having come from a good friend, and she felt so humiliated that she grabbed her bag and practically ran from the classroom with horrid names and catcalls following her as she fled.
"Alright, settle down class" Alaric shouted as he tried to grasp some control over the room once more.
He had heard whispers going around at the dance the night before and couldn't help but feel sorry for the kid, whether she was a vampire or not.
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Jessica walked straight out of the school and started walking home, she tried not to let the tears fall as she tried to calm her breathing.
'Damn Tyler to hell for blabbing my business all over the school' she thought angrily to herself as she lost control of her tears.
'Damn myself for going through with it in the first place' she seethed as she wanted nothing more in that moment than to do something to numb the pain.
She started walking the backroads that would eventually lead back to the boarding house. She was getting more and more trapped in her dark thoughts. She wanted to smoke, she wanted to get hammered, she had that restless urge to do something reckless and damaging. She wanted her body to hurt, to be in physical pain rather than emotional pain. She always struggled to handle her emotions.
She was shaken from her darkness as she heard the sound of a familiar engine heading towards her. She gulped as the car came to a halt a few metres in front of her, and Damon got out of the car.
"Jessica, what on earth are you doing out here? After everything, please don't tell me that you're actually stupid enough to be ditching school young lady!" he said angrily.
However, as the girl continued to walk towards him, he paused when he noticed that she had definitely been crying…no matter how hard she was trying to hide it in that moment. There was also something about her expression, something dark, that made the hairs on the back of his neck tingle.
Damon frowned, immediately concerned.
"Jessica, what happened?" Damon asked gently.
Jessica shook her head and gulped.
"Nothing. I just don't feel very well. I just want to go home and go to bed" Jessica whispered, voice shaking slightly.
Damon knew full well that she was lying. However, he could tell that something had upset her and decided not to push her whilst she was feeling fragile, no matter how much he wanted to question her until she had divulged everything to him.
"Come on, get in the car. I'll drop you home and call the school to let them know you've come home sick" Damon suggested.
Jessica continued to look sullenly at the ground as she climbed into the front seat.
Damon turned the car around and drove back towards their home, he subtly studied Jessica. He didn't want to admit that he was worried about her however, he knew that she did not like to show weakness. As he noted the tears rolling down her cheeks, he felt the need to get to the bottom of her pain quickly. It had to bad for her to be openly crying in front of him.
When he pulled up outside the boarding house, Jessica leapt from the car before anything else could be said. She whispered a 'thank you' to Damon as he watched her run at an impressive top speed into the house. He sat in the car for a few moments and listened as he heard her climb the stairs inside and shut herself in her bedroom. He then heard her sniffling and trying to stifle the sounds of her sobs as she cried.
Damon sighed and pulled out his cell so that he could call the school.
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Jessica woke to the sound of soft knocking on her bedroom door. She didn't remember falling asleep, but she remembered what had happened at school and then getting home with Damon before running to her room and drowning in misery. She must have fallen asleep from emotional exhaustion.
"I know you're awake. Can I come in?" Damon asked awkwardly from the other side of the door.
Normally he would've just forced his way into the room, Damon didn't have the patience for waiting outside closed doors he could easily open. However, he knew he was dealing with an emotional teenage girl and wanted to completely respect her privacy. He even questioned if he would have the strength to walk away if she told him 'no', or to 'go away'.
"Come in" Jessica mumbled into her mattress, knowing that Damon would hear her.
Damon, breathing a sigh of relief, entered the darkened room and looked at the mess that was his daughter bundled up in her bed.
"You've been asleep all afternoon. I thought you might be hungry" Damon shrugged.
Jessica shook her head.
"Thank you but, I'm really not in the mood for food" Jessica admitted.
Damon nodded; he wasn't going to force her to eat if she didn't feel like it.
"Want to tell me what's going on?" Damon asked as he walked into the room and perched onto the end of Jessica's bed.
"It's nothing, I'm just being stupid. Don't worry about it" Jessica said, her voice quiet.
Damon frowned.
"You don't cry like that over nothing Jessica" Damon pushed.
Jessica shrugged.
The two stared at each other for a few moments, willing the other to break first.
Damon relented.
"I called the school; they've excused you for the day" Damon sighed.
Jessica nodded and thanked him.
"However, the person I spoke to at the school said she would have done the same thing had she been in your position" Damon said.
Jessica grimaced, it was bad enough that the other students were gossiping about her but now the adults and staff were as well?!
Jessica groaned.
"What's going on? Tell me now, so I can work out how I can help you" Damon pressed.
"I think Tyler blabbed about us sleeping together. The whole school is talking about it and, of course, Tyler is 'the man' and I'm…well…there's lots of interesting names going around to describe me at the moment. Apparently, I'm a 'fireball' in bed and I swallow" Jessica confessed bitterly.
Damon tried not to groan, he absolutely loathed teen drama. However, there was something about seeing this teen upset that irked him even more.
"I'm going to murder that punk" Damon growled.
Jessica knew he wasn't kidding.
"Please, just leave it. They'll have their fun, spread their gossip, and then something else will come along and it will be old news" Jessica shrugged.
"You don't honestly think that I'm going to allow you to let this go, do you?" Damon asked, stunned that Jessica would even suggest it.
"Please don't make it worse. It's my fault anyway…I slept with the guy; I deserve everything they're saying" she whispered brokenly.
Damon stared sadly at his daughter, she had no sense of her own self-worth, and he cursed the bastards who dared to make her feel worthless and decided that he really needed to get on top of that and maybe set her up with someone she could talk to about it all.
Damon remained silent. He moved up the bed and closer to the teen and, for the second time since she had arrived in Mystic Falls, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a comforting hug.
Jessica allowed more tears to fall as she melted into the hug, the comfort was what she needed and there was something about being wrapped up in the arms of a vampire that made her feel powerful. Like she would always be protected with such a strong presence surrounding her.
Damon felt her relax and he was satisfied that he had managed to ease her pain somewhat, even if she was still crying. He lost track of time as the two shared a rare bonding moment together.
They stayed like that long enough for Stefan to come snooping.
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Stefan had heard the stories and remarks that had been circulating around the school about his niece and he wanted to rip every single one of those students apart. He was so angry and wound up that Elena had spent the whole day trying to calm him down.
"What did you expect Stefan? She slept with Tyler and we both know he is well known for getting into girls' pants. She should've known better" Elena tried to sooth him.
Stefan growled.
"They should at least treat her with a bit more respect, then she wouldn't need to know better. She knows and holds some regret for what she did. They should all keep their noses out of her business" Stefan spat.
When the stories had reached their group at lunchtime, Stefan had looked around and found that Jessica was nowhere to be seen. Normally she would be sitting with Jeremy however, Jeremy was sat on his own today. Stefan had panicked and contacted Damon to ask if he had heard from Jessica. Damon had replied and stated that she had come home from school upset and had gone to bed. Stefan relaxed once he knew that she was safe at home.
He still didn't like the comments and names that everyone was calling Jessica and when his control snapped, he thundered out to the football field to find the mayor's son.
Tyler had seen Stefan coming towards him and went pale and wide-eyed.
"Woah! Woah! Woah! Stefan...before you kill me, please hear me out. I didn't spread the gossip" Tyler begged.
Stefan just growled at Tyler and was seconds away from causing damage.
"She trusted you; you are special to her for some unknown reason. Do you know that?" Stefan spat as he shoved Tyler with a lot of force.
Tyler slammed to the ground and begged Stefan to give him five minutes to explain.
Stefan went to pounce on Tyler but was stopped by Alaric who happened to have been there to see the start of the commotion.
"Stefan! Break it up, stop it or I will have to involve the principal" Alaric warned as he tried to hold Stefan back from Tyler.
"Stefan, please, let me explain" Tyler said as he got to his feet.
Stefan just seethed at him. Tyler took that as his moment to start talking.
"Look, the morning I dropped Jessica off, I got home and some of my friends had arrived to hang out at my place for the day. I hadn't cleared up from the night before and they knew I'd had a girl over. Jessica left behind her cardigan, and it had her name – just her first name – written on the label. I refused to tell the guy's which Jessica I'd had over. One of those guy's and I got into a fight a few days ago and, he saw Jessica and I dancing last night, he put two and two together and started spreading the rumours. I tried to get them under control and stop them before they could spread but, once it was out there, it was impossible. I haven't seen her since yesterday, I just want to know how she's doing" Tyler quickly explained.
"Come on Stefan, it wasn't Tyler's fault. Let's get you inside and calmed down" Alaric stated as he ushered Stefan away from Tyler.
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Upon arriving home from school, the first thing Stefan did was go straight up to Jessica's room. As he opened her bedroom door, he paused when he saw an upset and tearful Jessica wrapped up in Damon's arms. Damon glared at his younger brother, daring Stefan to make a comment.
Stefan sighed and went and sat on the bed, on the other side of Jessica. He rubbed her back in a comforting gesture.
"For what it's worth Jess, Tyler never said a word…one of his friends who Tyler's had an argument with is the one who spread the rumors" Stefan said.
Jessica sighed and sat up; Damon still kept his arms wrapped around her though.
"Thank you, Stefan" Jessica murmured.
"Anytime kid" Stefan replied whilst still rubbing her back soothingly.
"Hey, I've got to go over to the Gilbert's place and talk to Jeremy. Do you want to come with? He might cheer you up" Damon suggested.
"No, I don't want to see Jeremy at the moment" Jessica deadpanned.
Damon and Stefan looked at each other in confusion.
"Any reason why not that we should be aware of?" Damon asked.
Jessica shook her head, obviously lying.
Damon sighed.
"What has he said to you?" Stefan asked.
"Doesn't matter, I just don't want to see him" Jessica stated.
Stefan shrugged in response to Damon's questioning glance.
"Ok, well Uncle Steffie, it's your turn to babysit the drama teen" Damon announced as he finally let go of Jessica and stood up.
Jessica chuckled at the new nickname, and Damon grinned at her.
"I'm going over to ask Jeremy about this Anna chick, she's a bit too fond of the family journals if you ask me" Damon commented.
"That's what I thought" Jessica said.
"Has Jeremy mentioned anything about Anna to you?" Damon asked Jessica, feeling like a moron that he forgot Jeremy and Jessica hung out and that she was likely to know extra information.
"He and Anna met at the library a couple of weeks ago and have been hanging out together ever since. I saw Anna for the first time at the dance last night, I think she was asking Jeremy about his ancestor's journal. I stopped listening after he said that he didn't have it" Jessica answered.
Damon processed the information and stored it away for the future, he nodded at the two and told them that he would see them both later.
Stefan and Jessica stayed sat on Jessica's bed as they heard the front door close and a car engine roar into life before getting quiet once again.
Stefan and Jessica sat in silence for a bit before Stefan decided to speak.
"Did Jeremy say where the journal was?" Stefa asked her.
Jessica nodded.
"Yeah, he's just finished writing a paper on it and Mr Saltzman wanted to see it to verify the sources. My guess is that Jeremy gave it to him" Jessica shrugged.
She still did not understand the importance of this book.
Stefan contemplated her answer for a moment and then sighed.
"I know it is probably not the right moment for this however, I need you to come somewhere with me tonight…I might need your help" Stefan said cryptically.
Jessica looked at him suspiciously.
"Can I know what it is that you might need help with?" Jessica asked.
Stefan shook his head.
"It's too long and complicated to explain all at once. I will fill you in as we go along but let's consider tonight to be my personal punishment that Damon has asked me to dish out" Stefan stated.
Jessica frowned; she didn't like the sound of this.
"Fine, but can you at least tell me where we are starting?" Jessica asked.
Stefan nodded.
"We're going to the school" Stefan informed her.
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The car journey back to the school had been quiet. Stefan was focused and Jessica could tell that whatever it was that Stefan needed her help for was serious.
They pulled up to the school and got out of Stefan's car. Stefan headed over to one of the side doors and broke the lock with an easy snap. He opened the door, and then the pair were sneaking through the corridors.
Jessica realised that they were heading for Alaric Saltzman's classroom. She turned to Stefan, looking confused, but Stefan just held a finger to his lips and motioned for her to follow him into the vacant classroom.
Stefan knew they would have to be quick as he could see the history teachers desk light was still turned on and Alaric's stuff was still spread out on the desk. Alaric could come back at any second. Stefan went over to Alaric's bookshelf at the side of the classroom and started going through the papers and books there hoping to find the journal.
"What are we looking for exactly?" Jessica asked in a whisper.
"The Gilbert journal" Stefan replied.
"Ok, what is the deal with this journal? Why is everyone so obsessed with it?" Jessica asked.
"I will tell you in a bit, but we need to find it first. Can you check through the papers and books on Alaric's desk? It will be a standard leather-bound journal all hand-written in lead ink" Stefan described.
Jessica sighed and nodded as she headed over to Alaric's desk and start leafing through the papers and books on it.
Jessica and Stefan were so engrossed in trying to find the journal that neither of them heard the history teacher silently making his way back into the classroom.
Alaric saw Jessica first and aimed his self-made compressed gun at her back.
Stefan caught sight of Alaric a second too late as Alaric fired a sharpened piece of wood from the gun.
Jessica heard a bang and then felt explosive pain in the back of her right shoulder blade. She screamed in agony and dropped to the floor.
Stefan had almost made it to her but had missed catching the piece of wood by a fraction of a second. Stefan's felt guilt and pain rip through him as he watched his niece crumple to the ground in agony, a piece of wood sticking out from her shoulder. The blood quickly started pooling from the deep wound.
Stefan acted quickly and ripped the weapon from Alaric's hands before he could fire again. He shoved Alaric into one of the chairs before zooming over and kneeling beside Jessica who was still screaming.
"Oh Jessica, I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" he apologised as he gripped the piece of wood and yanked it from his niece's shoulder.
The blood poured from her wound without any signs of slowing, this confused Alaric. He was sure that the wound should have started closing up by now, so his late wife's research would have him believe.
Stefan sat Jessica up whilst he held his breath and fought through the delicious aroma of Jessica's blood. He quickly bit his wrist deeply enough to bleed, then shoved his bleeding wrist into his niece's mouth.
"Drink Jessica, please" he begged, his tone full of stress.
Jessica didn't have another choice but to gulp her uncle's blood.
The more blood Jessica took, the more Stefan and Alaric could see the bloody wound receding. After a few minutes, the wound had sealed completely, and the bleeding had stopped.
All that remained was a dull ache in her shoulder and her ripped blood-soaked t-shirt.
"Are you ok?" Stefan asked remorsefully.
Jessica nodded.
Stefan and Jessica's attention focused back on the stricken history teacher who was still sat in one of the classroom chairs.
Alaric was nervous, he had watched the scene between Stefan and Jessica unfolding and now that their focus was back on him, he was worried that this might be the end for him.
Stefan grabbed Alaric's self-made gun and walked over to Alaric.
Alaric was surprised when Stefan held the gun out towards him.
"I'm not gonna hurt you unless you try that again. However, if you so much as think about hurting Jessica, I will tear your body to shreds without blinking. Am I clear?" Stefan stated threateningly.
Alaric gulped and nodded and took his gun back.
"Now, you obviously know what I am. The question is what do you want?" Stefan asked.
Stefan and Jessica listened intently to Alaric's story about how his wife went missing and that he had caught Damon snacking on her.
"So, you're here for revenge on Damon? That's going to end badly for you" Jessica stated.
"Big words, considering I almost took you out a few minutes ago" Alaric stated.
"Actually, although Jessica carries the name Salvatore and is family, she isn't a vampire like Damon and me. You genuinely nearly killed an innocent a few minutes ago. So, I wouldn't be going around bragging about that to anyone tough guy, especially not Damon" Stefan said.
Alaric's eyes widened as he stared at Jessica.
"You're not a vampire? I almost really killed you?" Alaric whispered.
Jessica nodded. Of course, neither her nor Stefan were going to get into the conversation about the half-vampire half-witch conundrum with this vampire hunter.
Alaric closed his eyes as he felt tears spring to them.
"God, I am so sorry Jessica. I just assumed that you were…" Alaric was cut off.
"I suggest if you don't want a criminal record for murder, you need to stop assuming. Vampires make allies of all kinds, including humans. You need to make sure that your target is a genuine threat before you attempt to kill it" Stefan informed him.
Alaric nodded in understanding.
"What can I do to make it up to you?" Alaric asked, pleading with his eyes for Jessica's forgiveness.
Jessica sighed; she couldn't blame the guy for assuming that she was a threat considering how closely linked she was to Damon and Stefan.
"Tell us where the Gilbert journal is that Jeremy loaned you" Jessica stated.
"It's on my desk" Alaric stated.
"No, it's not" Jessica replied.
Alaric glanced at his desk and noticed that the journal was no longer where he left it.
"Well, it was on my desk" he stated in confusion.
Jessica and Stefan glared at him for being so careless with such a historical artefact.
Noticing their expressions, Alaric tried to ease them both.
"I made a photocopy of it" he stated.
"Show us" Stefan instructed.
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Once Alaric had given the photocopy of the journal to Stefan, Jessica and Stefan left the school but not before needlessly telling Alaric to clean up Jessica's blood from the classroom floor if he didn't want anyone asking questions.
Stefan and Jessica raced back to Stefan's car and got in, heading for the Gilbert's house. Jessica grabbed her jacket that she had left in the car and put it on, covering up her bloody, ripped, t-shirt.
As they approached the Gilbert's house, Stefan and Jessica saw Damon and Jeremy walking out of it.
"What are you doing here?" Damon asked Jessica.
"She wanted to see Jenna and Elena and I was coming over to see Elena anyway" Stefan shrugged.
Jessica frowned at Stefan's blasé response and was about to question it but…
"What are you guys doing?" Stefan quickly interjected.
"We're going to meet Jeremy's friend Anna at The Grille if you want to join?" Damon said.
Stefan shook his head.
"No thanks" Jessica said, looking uncertainly at Jeremy.
Damon and Stefan noticed the hesitant look on Jessica's face and the guilty look on Jeremy's.
"Jessica, I'm sorry for what I said at school" Jeremy apologised.
Jessica just shook her head.
"I'm not interested in your apologies tonight, Jeremy. I needed my friend earlier, not another person to make me feel shitty" she stated.
"Jessica, I will apologise to you every day until the day I die. But, for the record, I don't really think that you're easy" Jeremy said, looking ashamed of himself.
Jessica cringed at the comment, she really hated that phrase.
Stefan grimaced; he hadn't known that Jeremy had made that particular remark to Jessica's face from the stories that were flying through the school earlier that day.
Damon looked at Jessica's hurt expression, realising that this was part of the reason she had been so upset earlier. He then turned back to look at Jeremy, a murderous glare on his face.
"You said what?!" Damon yelled angrily at Jeremy.
Jeremy paled slightly at Damon's icy tone.
"Damon, just leave it, please…" Jessica was cut off.
"You, get your ass in that car. Your father dying clearly means you are behind in your education about how you speak to, and treat, a girl. It's going to be a long trip to The Grille punk, we have some talking to do about respect towards women" Damon warned Jeremy, leaving no room for argument as he marched a petrified Jeremy to his car and shoved him in the passenger seat.
"Stefan, she's your responsibility tonight, so you'd better look after her with your life" Damon warned, glancing reassuringly at Jessica before getting into his car and driving down the street.
"Why didn't you tell us?" Stefan asked as they watched Damon's car disappear in the distance.
Jessica shrugged.
"It was a comment he made in anger. To be honest, if it hadn't been Tyler I slept with, I don't think Jeremy would've cared about it at all" Jessica said.
Stefan sighed.
"Ok, fine, we will talk about it all later. Now, we have the next part of the night to get through" Stefan said as he led the two of them inside the house.
Once inside, Elena, Jessica, and Stefan were all sat in Elena's room and going through the photocopy Alaric had made of the Gilbert journal.
"What are we looking for exactly?" Jessica asked.
"We are looking for any reference to Emily Bennett, her Grimoire, or Johnathan Gilbert's thoughts regarding anything witch-y related. Get reading" Stefan instructed.
The three read through pages and pages of the journal when finally, Elena announced that she had found something.
As it turns out, Emily Bennett's Grimoire had been discussed with Giuseppe Salvatore and he would take the secrets of the book to his grave.
"He means that literally, doesn't he?" Jessica whispered.
"What?" Elena asked.
"Giuseppe Salvatore would remove all fear regarding Emily Bennett's Grimoire, by taking its secrets with him to his grave. He was buried with the thing, am I correct?" Jessica asked as she looked at Stefan.
Stefan nodded.
"I know where the Grimoire is" Stefan stated as he grabbed his jacket.
Elena and Jessica looked at each other for a few seconds before grabbing their own jackets and following Stefan down the stairs.
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Stefan drove all three of them to the middle of nowhere in the woods.
"Where are we?" Elena asked as they all got out of the car.
Stefan walked over to a vast space in the woods.
"This used to be a graveyard" Stefan informed them.
Jessica and Elena looked stunned.
Jessica grimaced at the implications.
"We're digging up his grave. Aren't we?" she asked.
"Yeah, welcome to your punishment Jessica. Grab a shovel and start digging here" Stefan instructed as she took a shovel.
Jessica decided not to argue and do as she was told.
"Not many girls can say they've dug up their grandfather's grave" Jessica whispered under her breath so that only Stefan could hear her comment.
Stefan looked at her and grinned.
"Sorry to drag you into it, but I really needed the help. Plus, you're smarter than you are given credit for. Also, it's a Grimoire and I thought it might interest you" Stefan said.
"I guess…" Jessica replied as she went back to work.
An hour or so later, Stefan and Jessica were still shovelling the dirt however, when they both went to push the shovel into the ground, the shovel met resistance with a hollow dull thud.
Jessica and Stefan looked at each other.
"This is it" Stefan said as he helped lift Jessica out of the hole that was now much bigger than her.
Elena and Jessica watched as Stefan broke the seal of the coffin that was there and yanked the lid of it clean off.
The three of them could see the skeleton that was once Giuseppe Salvatore and, within his skeletal arms, Giuseppe was clutching a large tome.
Stefan sighed as he pried the book from the skeleton's arms and placed the book gently on the ground and opened it.
The three of them were busy looking at the book with interest when a sudden voice shook them all from their focus.
"Well, well, well…this is an interesting turn of events" Damon stated from the other side of the grave.
"I can't let you do it Damon" Stefan stated as he moved forward, the Grimoire clutched in his grasp.
Elena moved back away from the brothers; she looked nervous as hell.
Jessica stared at the whole picture in front of her and felt confused. She was clearly missing something big here.
"Do what Stefan? What piece of the story did you leave out? What's going on?" Jessica asked in confusion.
Damon felt slightly less betrayed that his teen daughter's expression of confusion was genuine, and she clearly hadn't been informed of the true purpose of finding the Grimoire before Stefan had encouraged her to help him do it.
Jessica watched as the two brothers argued between each other and watched in terror as Damon made a grab for Elena and force fed her his blood whilst threatening to turn her into a vampire. Stefan backed down and handed Damon the book as Damon let go of Elena and she ran into Stefan's arms. Stefan walked away with Elena, to remove her from the dangerous situation.
Jessica was left standing there as she watched Damon stomp around angrily at his brother's and Elena's betrayal.
She could tell that Elena's betrayal of his trust hurt him more deeply than Stefan's had.
"What's going on Damon?" Jessica whispered the question.
Damon did not answer her.
Once Damon had fixed the dirt back in place over the coffin and doused the fire that had helped them all see, Damon turned to Jessica.
"Come on kid, let's go home" he stated as he handed Jessica the Grimoire to carry.